Mido: Former Tottenham Hotspur striker honing Egyptian talent for Europe

Mido has around 100 boys at The Maker and is aiming to expand the project to include girls.

He says working on mental strength and adaptability is crucial to give his intake the best chance of succeeding in Europe.

“We have a top psychology team who are working with the kids daily,” he explained.

“Most of our boys speak very good English. As Egyptians, some of us had difficulties because of not speaking any foreign language which doesn’t help to adapt and with communication with your new team-mates.

“Being able to deal with different cultures is very important.

“If you have the right mindset, [are] physically strong, speak different languages, have tactical awareness, and of course the skills, you make it into Europe.”

Mido began his playing career with Zamalek and later returned for two further stints with the Cairo giants.

Egyptian clubs have dominated the African Champions League over recent years, winning five of the past six titles, yet Mido’s ultimate goal is for his young players at The Maker to establish themselves in Europe.

“Our main target is to get at least four or five players into Europe,” he said.

“And we are dreaming that in 10 years we will have 60-70 players graduated out of this training program playing around Europe.

“And we will be following them, monitoring them, and we will have people around them to keep working on developing them – even if they are playing in Europe.

“For me, this is a brilliant feeling, that you’re helping young kids to develop and to work on their dream.

“The beautiful thing about coming here is seeing the boys’ eyes are bright, full of hope. We’re all here to dream.”